Silver Digital and Electronic Device Design · 2025
Groove AI Powered Record Player
- A' Design Award 2025 Silver Winner in Digital and Electronic Device Design
- Awarded April 15, 2025
- CLIENT: Groove
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 57,203
- Verification code F1217DACF7 · Verify this award
About Groove AI Powered Record Player
Groove is a record player that combines vinyl playback with digital technology. The body is machined from a solid block of anodized aluminum and fitted with polished stainless steel components. A short-range projector shows a menu, lyrics, album art and track details on a nearby wall. When a record is placed on the platter, it is detected automatically and the tonearm is deployed from its resting position. Music recognition identifies the song during the first seconds of playback. A retractable dial withdraws when the player is not in use, keeping the form minimal.
The Groove AI Powered Record Player by Daniel Henneh exemplifies a compelling synthesis of analog audio tradition and contemporary technological innovation, representing a significant contribution to the evolving dialogue between heritage music reproduction and intelligent digital integration. This award-winning design demonstrates exceptional sensitivity to the enduring cultural resonance of vinyl playback while embracing the possibilities afforded by artificial intelligence. The formal vocabulary draws upon established conventions of premium audio equipment—the horizontal plinth, the circular platter, the articulated tonearm—yet reinterprets these familiar elements through a distinctly contemporary material and geometric language. The aluminum-toned housing suggests aerospace-derived precision, its soft radii and generous proportions conveying both technological capability and approachable domesticity. Compositionally, the design achieves harmonious balance between the dominant circular form of the platter and the rectilinear chassis, while the diagonal trajectory of the tonearm introduces dynamic visual interest. The chromatic restraint of the silver-black palette, punctuated by the warm coral center label, demonstrates sophisticated understanding of visual hierarchy and brand identity integration. Technical merit is evident in the refined transitions between surfaces, the considered placement of functional elements, and the seamless integration of speaker systems within the unified form. The perforated speaker grilles introduce textural rhythm without disrupting formal coherence, while the control mechanisms maintain sculptural elegance alongside functional clarity. This work participates in a broader contemporary movement toward premium consumer electronics that honor tactile ritual and aesthetic presence in domestic environments. Viewers might contemplate how such designs mediate between nostalgic attachment to physical media and contemporary expectations of intelligent, connected functionality.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Experience timeless music and cutting-edge technology in one elegant package. Groove is made from a solid block of anodized aluminum and polished stainless steel components ensuring both durability and a modern aesthetic. It is equipped with advanced AI and a short range projector to automatically detect and display lyrics, album art, music meta data and all the relevant information that modern music players are capable of. This truly elevated Grove beyond the conventional record player.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Physical dimensions: 500mm x 350mm x 80mm (WxBxH)
Audio: Built-in stereo amplifier, Bluetooth 5.1, 3.5mm Aux Out, Beam forming microphones.
Connectivity: Wifi, LAN
Display: Short range projector
Platter: Direct drive BLDC motor with precision speed control - Tags
- Record player, Turntable, High End, Hifi, Audiophile, Music, Timeless, Premium
- Production Technology
- To be made from machined aluminum, and polished stainless steel components. Actuators will be used to implement mechanisms that automatically deploys the tonearm and retract and dial to maintain a minimalist look when Grove is not being used. It will also have advance electronics which comprices a projector module, wireless connectivity and a central onboard computer.
- Design Challenge
- The most challenge part of designing Groove was simplifying the conventional record player to only its essential components in order to achieve a clean minimal design. For instance spring preload mechanism was used in order to get rid of the counterweight which is used in the tonearm of conventional record players.
- Project Duration
- 2 months, in San Jose California.
- Operation Flow
- Once powered on, the multifunctional retractable dial is deployed to enable an interface to interact with the menu system that is displayed on the projected UI on the wall. When a record (vinyl) is placed on the platter, it is automatically detected and presents the music controls on the UI, once the play button in selected the tonearm is automatically deployed from the resting position to the platter to begin playing the music. The first few seconds of the music is automatically used for AI music recognition. Once the song is identified, the lyrics, album art and other useful details about the songs is displayed on the UI.
- Research
- Most of the research done for groove was to understand the current state of music recognition and explore feasibility of such a technology with minimal computing power. The ideal solution for Groove will be one that is accurately recognizes music in the shortest amount of time.
Additional research was done a retractable mechanism and actuators that could be application for implementation of the retractable dial and tonearm. I identified off-the-shelf stepper motors with reduction gears as well as short distance linear motion systems that could be used. - Inspiration
- Inspired by my love for music, advance technology and high end products with durable materials. My goal for groove is to leverage recent advancements in technology to give the traditional record player a modern revival.
Colors of Groove AI Powered Record Player
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